Diversity of Naturally-Regenerated Native Woody Species in Forest Plantations in the Ethiopian Highlands

Diversity of Naturally-Regenerated Native Woody Species in Forest Plantations in the Ethiopian Highlands

background

This paper examines woody species diversity and understory vegetation of naturally regenerated native tree and shrub species in 4-plantation forests and adjacent natural forests in Wono Genet in Ethiopia.

Research Goals & Methods

Understory woody species richness, abundance and herbaceous ground cover were recorded in plantations of Pinus patula, Cupressus lusitanica, Grevillea robusta and Juniperus procera.

Conclusions & Takeaways

The results showed 53 naturally regenerated woody species, the Rubiaceae family was the most common (in terms of number of species), while the Ulmaceae family, consisting of only one species (Celtis africana) had the highest abundance, of 54%. Also, 12 woody species present in the adjacent natural forests were absent in the plantations. This is attributed to the large seeds that are more likely to be transported over shorterdistances as compared to smaller seeds. Plantations of C. lusitanica had the lowest highest seedling abundance and richness, although not significant and the lowest evenness compared to the other plantations. Understory ground cover differed amongst plantations, with G. robusta having about 4 times the ground cover percentage of C. lusitanica. The reason was the denser crowns of C. lusitanica and J. proceracasting shade on the understory.

 

 

Reference: 

Yirdaw E. Diversity of naturally-regenerated native woody species in forest plantations in the Ethiopian highlands. New Forests. 2001;22:159–177. doi:10.1023/a:1015629327039.

Affiliation: 

  • University of Helsinki, Department of Forest Ecology/ Tropical Silviculture Unit